So job makes it into the faith hall of fame- for actually
doing nothing!

Huh?

He simply endured all the tough stuff- battled with his
friends who kept telling him he was wrong.

And in the end- God restored everything to Job- and gave him
much more.

But Job had to wait- that was the virtue we see in Job.

It wasn’t really the great faith of an Abraham.

Or the great worship of a king David.

No- it was the ability to wait- to stick it out- to passively
go thru the trial- and refuse to curse God.

Now- most of us do not see this as a virtue- after all there
were many other people in Jobs day who were prospering- things were going well-
kids were fine.

And yet Job is sitting there in ashes- covered with
blisters- to the point where he is a spectacle to all around him.

Much like what Paul the apostle said about his calling.

So- remember- one of the key themes of James is it is a good
thing to go thru trials.

It is good to endure them- to stick it out.

This is how God builds faith- and character.

It is one thing to be gifted- to have God’s obvious favor
all around you- and for you to rejoice.

But Peter tells us to rejoice when the trials are upon us

1Peter 1:6 Wherein ye greatly rejoice, though now for a season, if
need be, ye are in heaviness through manifold temptations:

1Peter 1:7 That the trial of your faith, being much more precious
than of gold that perisheth, though it be tried with fire, might be found unto
praise and honour and glory at the appearing of Jesus Christ:

To see the bigger picture.

The prophet tells us more are the children of the desolate-
meaning when you are going thru difficulty- that’s when God will use you to
have a great impact.

James 5:1 Go to now, ye rich men, weep and howl for your miseries
that shall come upon you.

James 5:2 Your riches are corrupted, and your garments are motheaten.

James 5:3 Your gold and silver is cankered; and the rust of them
shall be a witness against you, and shall eat your flesh as it were fire. Ye
have heaped treasure together for the last days.

James 5:4 Behold, the hire of the labourers who have reaped down
your fields, which is of you kept back by fraud, crieth: and the cries of them
which have reaped are entered into the ears of the Lord of sabaoth.

James 5:5 Ye have lived in pleasure on the earth, and been wanton;
ye have nourished your hearts, as in a day of slaughter.

James 5:6 Ye have condemned and killed the just; and he doth not
resist you.

James 5:7 Be patient therefore, brethren, unto the coming of the
Lord. Behold, the husbandman waiteth for the precious fruit of the earth, and
hath long patience for it, until he receive the early and latter rain.

James 5:8 Be ye also patient; stablish your hearts: for the coming
of the Lord draweth nigh.

James 5:9 Grudge not one against another, brethren, lest ye be
condemned: behold, the judge standeth before the door.

James 5:10 Take, my brethren, the prophets, who have spoken in the
name of the Lord, for an example of suffering affliction, and of patience.

James 5:11 Behold, we count them happy which endure. Ye have heard
of the patience of Job, and have seen the end of the Lord; that the Lord is
very pitiful, and of tender mercy.

James 5:12 But above all things, my brethren, swear not, neither
by heaven, neither by the earth, neither by any other oath: but let your yea be
yea; and your nay, nay; lest ye fall into condemnation.

James 5:13 Is any among you afflicted? let him pray. Is any merry?
let him sing psalms.

James 5:14 Is any sick among you? let him call for the elders of
the church; and let them pray over him, anointing him with oil in the name of the
Lord:

James 5:15 And the prayer of faith shall save the sick, and the
Lord shall raise him up; and if he have committed sins, they shall be forgiven
him.

James 5:16 Confess your faults one to another, and pray one for
another, that ye may be healed. The effectual fervent prayer of a righteous man
availeth much.

James 5:17 Elias was a man subject to like passions as we are, and
he prayed earnestly that it might not rain: and it rained not on the earth by
the space of three years and six months.

James 5:18 And he prayed again, and the heaven gave rain, and the
earth brought forth her fruit.

James 5:19 Brethren, if any of you do err from the truth, and one
convert him;

James 5:20 Let him know, that he which converteth the sinner from
the error of his way shall save a soul from death, and shall hide a multitude
of sins.

Isaiah 64:4
For since the beginning of the world men have not heard, nor perceived by the
ear, neither hath the eye seen, O God, beside thee, what he hath prepared for
him that waiteth for him.

But as it is written, Eye hath not seen,norearheard, neither have entered
into the heart of man, the things which God hath prepared for them that love
him. 1st Cor. 2:9

Whoso offereth praise glorifieth me: and to himthat orderethhisconversationaright will I shew the salvation of
God. Ps. 50:23

10 After
these things the Lord appointed
other seventy also, and sent them two and two before his face into every city
and place, whither he himself would come.

2 Therefore
said he unto them, The harvest truly is great, but the labourers are few: pray
ye therefore the Lord of the harvest, that he would send forth labourers into
his harvest.

Note- Please do me a favor, those who read/like the posts-
re-post them on other sites as well as the site you read them on. I deal with
issues at times that it would be beneficial for some of you to download and
save the file from the Word Press link. This creates a permanent record. The on-line
videos are only good if sites are not hacked- which has happened in the past.
Thanks- John.#

1Samuel
20:1 And David fled from Naioth in Ramah, and came and said before Jonathan,
What have I done? what is mine iniquity? and what is my sin before thy father,
that he seeketh my life?

1Samuel
20:2 And he said unto him, God forbid; thou shalt not die: behold, my father
will do nothing either great or small, but that he will shew it me: and why
should my father hide this thing from me? it is not so.

1Samuel
20:3 And David sware moreover, and said, Thy father certainly knoweth that I
have found grace in thine eyes; and he saith, Let not Jonathan know this, lest
he be grieved: but truly as the LORD liveth, and as thy soul liveth, there is
but a step between me and death.

1Samuel
20:4 Then said Jonathan unto David, Whatsoever thy soul desireth, I will even
do it for thee.

1Samuel
20:5 And David said unto Jonathan, Behold, to morrow is the new moon, and I
should not fail to sit with the king at meat: but let me go, that I may hide
myself in the field unto the third day at even.

1Samuel
20:6 If thy father at all miss me, then say, David earnestly asked leave of me
that he might run to Bethlehem his city: for there is a yearly sacrifice there
for all the family.

1Samuel
20:7 If he say thus, It is well; thy servant shall have peace: but if he be
very wroth, then be sure that evil is determined by him.

1Samuel
20:8 Therefore thou shalt deal kindly with thy servant; for thou hast brought
thy servant into a covenant of the LORD with thee: notwithstanding, if there be
in me iniquity, slay me thyself; for why shouldest thou bring me to thy father?

1Samuel
20:9 And Jonathan said, Far be it from thee: for if I knew certainly that evil
were determined by my father to come upon thee, then would not I tell it thee?

1Samuel
20:10 Then said David to Jonathan, Who shall tell me? or what if thy father
answer thee roughly?

1Samuel
20:11 And Jonathan said unto David, Come, and let us go out into the field. And
they went out both of them into the field.

1Samuel
20:12 And Jonathan said unto David, O LORD God of Israel, when I have sounded
my father about to morrow any time, or the third day, and, behold, if there be
good toward David, and I then send not unto thee, and shew it thee;

1Samuel
20:13 The LORD do so and much more to Jonathan: but if it please my father to
do thee evil, then I will shew it thee, and send thee away, that thou mayest go
in peace: and the LORD be with thee, as he hath been with my father.

1Samuel
20:14 And thou shalt not only while yet I live shew me the kindness of the
LORD, that I die not:

1Samuel
20:15 But also thou shalt not cut off thy kindness from my house for ever: no,
not when the LORD hath cut off the enemies of David every one from the face of
the earth.

1Samuel
20:16 So Jonathan made a covenant with the house of David, saying, Let the LORD
even require it at the hand of David's enemies.

1Samuel
20:17 And Jonathan caused David to swear again, because he loved him: for he
loved him as he loved his own soul.

1Samuel
20:18 Then Jonathan said to David, To morrow is the new moon: and thou shalt be
missed, because thy seat will be empty.

1Samuel
20:19 And when thou hast stayed three days, then thou shalt go down quickly,
and come to the place where thou didst hide thyself when the business was in
hand, and shalt remain by the stone Ezel.

1Samuel
20:20 And I will shoot three arrows on the side thereof, as though I shot at a
mark.

1Samuel
20:21 And, behold, I will send a lad, saying, Go, find out the arrows. If I
expressly say unto the lad, Behold, the arrows are on this side of thee, take
them; then come thou: for there is peace to thee, and no hurt; as the LORD
liveth.

1Samuel
20:22 But if I say thus unto the young man, Behold, the arrows are beyond thee;
go thy way: for the LORD hath sent thee away.

1Samuel
20:23 And as touching the matter which thou and I have spoken of, behold, the
LORD be between thee and me for ever.

1Samuel
20:24 So David hid himself in the field: and when the new moon was come, the
king sat him down to eat meat.

1Samuel
20:25 And the king sat upon his seat, as at other times, even upon a seat by
the wall: and Jonathan arose, and Abner sat by Saul's side, and David's place
was empty.

1Samuel
20:26 Nevertheless Saul spake not any thing that day: for he thought, Something
hath befallen him, he is not clean; surely he is not clean.

1Samuel
20:27 And it came to pass on the morrow, which was the second day of the month,
that David's place was empty: and Saul said unto Jonathan his son, Wherefore
cometh not the son of Jesse to meat, neither yesterday, nor to day?

1Samuel
20:28 And Jonathan answered Saul, David earnestly asked leave of me to go to
Bethlehem:

1Samuel
20:29 And he said, Let me go, I pray thee; for our family hath a sacrifice in
the city; and my brother, he hath commanded me to be there: and now, if I have
found favour in thine eyes, let me get away, I pray thee, and see my brethren.
Therefore he cometh not unto the king's table.

1Samuel
20:30 Then Saul's anger was kindled against Jonathan, and he said unto him,
Thou son of the perverse rebellious woman, do not I know that thou hast chosen
the son of Jesse to thine own confusion, and unto the confusion of thy mother's
nakedness?

1Samuel
20:31 For as long as the son of Jesse liveth upon the ground, thou shalt not be
established, nor thy kingdom. Wherefore now send and fetch him unto me, for he
shall surely die.

1Samuel
20:32 And Jonathan answered Saul his father, and said unto him, Wherefore shall
he be slain? what hath he done?

1Samuel
20:33 And Saul cast a javelin at him to smite him: whereby Jonathan knew that
it was determined of his father to slay David.

1Samuel
20:34 So Jonathan arose from the table in fierce anger, and did eat no meat the
second day of the month: for he was grieved for David, because his father had
done him shame.

1Samuel
20:35 And it came to pass in the morning, that Jonathan went out into the field
at the time appointed with David, and a little lad with him.

1Samuel
20:36 And he said unto his lad, Run, find out now the arrows which I shoot. And
as the lad ran, he shot an arrow beyond him.

1Samuel
20:37 And when the lad was come to the place of the arrow which Jonathan had
shot, Jonathan cried after the lad, and said, Is not the arrow beyond thee?

1Samuel
20:38 And Jonathan cried after the lad, Make speed, haste, stay not. And
Jonathan's lad gathered up the arrows, and came to his master.

1Samuel
20:39 But the lad knew not any thing: only Jonathan and David knew the matter.

1Samuel
20:40 And Jonathan gave his artillery unto his lad, and said unto him, Go,
carry them to the city.

1Samuel
20:41 And as soon as the lad was gone, David arose out of a place toward the
south, and fell on his face to the ground, and bowed himself three times: and
they kissed one another, and wept one with another, until David exceeded.

1Samuel
20:42 And Jonathan said to David, Go in peace, forasmuch as we have sworn both
of us in the name of the LORD, saying, The LORD be between me and thee, and
between my seed and thy seed for ever. And he arose and departed: and Jonathan
went into the city.

12 At that
time Jesus went on the sabbath day through the corn; and his disciples were an
hungred, and began to pluck the ears of corn and to eat.

2 But
when the Pharisees saw it, they said unto him, Behold, thy disciples do that
which is not lawful to do upon the sabbath day.

3 But he
said unto them, Have ye not read what David did, when he was an hungred, and
they that were with him;

4 How he
entered into the house of God, and did eat the shewbread, which was not lawful
for him to eat, neither for them which were with him, but only for the priests?

Matt 12

James
5:1 Go to now, ye rich men, weep and howl for your miseries that shall come
upon you.

James
5:2 Your riches are corrupted, and your garments are motheaten.

James
5:3 Your gold and silver is cankered; and the rust of them shall be a witness
against you, and shall eat your flesh as it were fire. Ye have heaped treasure
together for the last days.

James
5:4 Behold, the hire of the labourers who have reaped down your fields, which
is of you kept back by fraud, crieth: and the cries of them which have reaped
are entered into the ears of the Lord of sabaoth.

James
5:5 Ye have lived in pleasure on the earth, and been wanton; ye have nourished
your hearts, as in a day of slaughter.

Note- Please do me a favor, those who read/like the posts-
re-post them on other sites as well as the site you read them on. I deal with
issues at times that it would be beneficial for some of you to download and
save the file from the Word Press link. This creates a permanent record. The
on-line videos are only good if sites are not hacked- which has happened in the
past. Thanks- John.#

. [1486] ARIUS- a priest from Egypt who would challenge the
deity of Jesus in the 4th century. Arius taught that Jesus was the
Son of God, but not eternally the Son. He said Jesus was a created being whom
the father ‘bestowed’ son ship upon. He taught that Jesus was ‘like God’ but
not God. The emperor Constantine would call the famous council of Nicaea in 325
a.d. and the council would agree with Athanasius and say that the Son and the
Father were of ‘the same substance’ [homoousios] and Arius’s belief would be
rejected. The debate would still rage on thru out the century as Constantine
would die and the new emperor from the east would hold to ‘Arian’ views.
Eventually Orthodoxy would win out and Arianism would be rejected by the
majority of believers. I should note that many of the oriental churches would
go the way of Arianism till this day; some of these churches are not like the
modern cults that we would automatically reject, but they do hold to beliefs
that Orthodox Christianity has rejected. As I have written about before, it’s
easy to see how various believers have struggled with these issues over the
years, some of the ways people express things can be deemed heresy a little too
quickly in my view. There are believers who express the deity of Jesus in ways
that some Arians express it, and they are not full Arians! The point being,
yes- Arian went too far in his belief that Jesus was a created being, Johns
gospel refutes this belief strongly [as well as many other portions of
scripture] but too say that Jesus was/is the full expression of the father,
because he ‘came out from God’ is also in keeping with scripture. Today we
should be familiar with the issues and also use much grace when labeling
different groups of believers; and we should strive for a unity in the Spirit
as much as possible. As believers we accept the full deity of Christ, one who
is of the ‘same substance’ of the father- true God from true God. He who has
seen the Son has seen the father- Jesus said to Phillip ‘I have been with you a
long time, if you see and know me, you have seen and known my father’ Jesus is
God come down in the flesh to dwell among men, the true Immanuel, God with us.

[1484] ‘This is why I Paul am in jail for Christ, having
taken up the cause of you outsiders, so called. I take it that you are familiar
with the part I was given in God’s plan for including everybody… none of our
ancestors understood this, only in our time has it been made clear thru God’s
Spirit… this is my life work, helping people understand and respond to God’s
message. It came as a sheer gift to me, a real surprise, God handling all the
details’ Ephesians 3, message bible. As I said earlier in this study, the
‘mystery’ that God revealed to Paul was the reality that thru Christ all ethnic
groups would be on the same footing with God. This specifically related to the
religious belief of the day that the ethnic nation of Israel were the only ones
with special access to God. For Paul to have been preaching this message in his
day would be like us teaching that God’s plan for all people today- Jews,
Arabs, Palestinians, Iranians, etc., it would be like saying Gods purpose for
our day is to accept all of these ethnic groups as one group thru Christ. To be
frank about it, I believe many evangelicals today are not fully seeing the
reality of the Cross when they exalt the natural heritage of Israel as Gods
special people. Though I realize many of these teachings mean well [end time
scenarios and stuff] yet in practice they deny the equal footing that all
people have in Christ. Paul was preaching the great news that your
ethnic/cultural background no longer made any difference- thru Christ we are
all Gods special people. This does not mean that we are all accepted whether or
not we believe in Christ, a sort of religious syncretism, but it does mean that
the offer of Jesus is available to all.

[parts]

(1226) 2ND
CORINTHIANS 4- In chapter 3 Paul said we are beholding/seeing God in an open
way as compared to the old covenant. In this chapter he shows us how we ‘see
God’. We see him in his Son. God has chosen to reveal himself to us thru his
Son. One of the first Christian councils [after the one at Jerusalem in Acts 15!] was held in the 4th
century under the Roman emperor Constantine. The reason was to bring unity to
the church on the issue of Christ’s divinity. These councils played political
roles as well as theological. After Constantine
became emperor he established the great city in the eastern empire called Constantinople. This city [named after him] became both
the theological and political seat in the eastern half of the empire. So you
had both a religious and political competition going on in the empire. Rome, situated in the
west, was feeling like she would lose her position if the eastern half started
gaining too much influence. So you had differing reasons for these councils.
But you also had sincere men who held to various beliefs at the time. The
bishop Arius came to teach that Jesus was the Son of God, but not God himself.
This created a stir in the empire and Constantine
called a council to settle the question. The debates went forth, both views
were discussed and classic Orthodoxy came down on the side of Jesus being God.
Now, there would be more councils dealing with Gods nature and Christ’s role,
but this was a defining moment in Christian history. The church [and the
scriptures] teach that God became man [incarnation] and thru Jesus we ‘see
God’. Paul also relates the many sufferings and trials he was going thru. He
says he tastes death and bears in his body the death of Jesus. He simply does
not give a picture of the Christian life that is common in today’s world. Many
believers are taught that these types of difficulties and sufferings are a
result of their lack of faith, or their inability to rightfully ‘access their
covenant rights’. Paul refutes this doctrine strongly. Paul has already
mentioned those who ‘peddle Gods word’ or who twist the scriptures for their
own benefit. It always amazes me to see well meaning believers/teachers go thru
the entire corpus of the New Testament and never see these things. It’s so easy
for preachers/teachers to read the scriptures with blinders on. Here Paul
taught that the many sufferings [both physical and spiritual] were an honorable
thing, they were his way of sharing in the sufferings and death of Christ. They
were ‘death in him, but life in you’ he saw his difficulties thru a redemptive
lens. He says the present sufferings are not worthy to be compared with the
glory that is to be revealed in us. The first verse of this chapter says seeing
we have received this great ministry, we don’t faint. I like Eugene Petersons
Message version, he says ‘just because times get hard, we don’t throw up our
hands and walk off the job’ I like that.

(1227) 2ND CORITNHIANS 5- Paul speaks of the
Christian hope- resurrection! This chapter can be confusing if not taken in
context. You could think that Paul is saying when we die we have a house/room
in heaven ‘waiting for us’ and this seems true enough. But he is really saying
something more along the lines of ‘in heaven [Gods realm] we have a promise of
a new body. The Spirit in us is the down payment, but full redemption will be
complete when we are raised from the dead’ the hope is a new body, not our
souls living some type of disembodied existence in a heavenly

JAMES 1

Try and watch this video- I cover lots of stuff
that place this letter in context for this study. [ Read acts 10,11,15,
Galatians 1-2]

Intro-

This letter was written by James- the brother of
Jesus.

He was one of the main church leaders at the
church in Jerusalem- we read about him in Acts chapter 15.

This [Acts 15] was the first church council in
the history of Christianity.

I already taught the book of Romans written by
the apostle Paul.

And as we read the New Testament in context- we
can see the reason why James penned this letter- and addressed it to Jewish
believers.

Paul was the most influential missionary in the
early church- he established most of the gentile churches we read about in the
bible [Rome being the exception].

He also wrote most of the letters that make up
our New Testament.

His main teaching was Justification by faith.

There was a division we read about in the bible-
between some of the Jewish believers at Jerusalem- and the churches Paul was
planting [the church council mentioned above- was convened over this issue].

This division was based on the teaching of Paul-
and some Jewish believers in Jerusalem accused Paul of rejecting the Mosaic
Law.

Paul defended himself in the letters of the New
Testament [Romans/Galatians] and even talks about his visits to the leaders at
the church in Jerusalem.

Now- in this context- it seems fitting for James-
the main church leader of the Jewish brothers- to ‘set the record straight’.

And to write his own letter- showing the
importance of GOOD WORKS- and even saying ‘see how a man is justified/saved by
works- and not by faith alone’.

The higher critics of Christianity [who you have
heard me talk about in recent videos] will teach that James and Paul ‘taught
different theologies’.

I do not
agree with them.

But- our bibles are an early collection of the
Real Time things that were taking place in the early church.

At the time these men were writing these letters-
they were not writing them as a complete canon [book] - but were writing them
as you or I would write a letter to another person.

In the wisdom of God- I think it is possible for
these men to have seen different aspects of the manifold wisdom of God- and
maybe they were not fully seeing the other writer’s point of view.

To me- this would not be a criticism of the canon
of scripture- but it would show us that God used these men- thru their
experiences- and yes- even disagreements- to write the letters that make up our
bibles-

And in time- they would indeed become the
official teaching of the church-

Embracing a broad range of Divine Revelation-
that in the end- does NOT CONTRADICT itself- but instead makes a complete work-
which we call the bible.

This letter is short- and packed with short
verses of great wisdom.

It is the only New Testament letter that falls
into the category of Wisdom Literature-

Meaning a particular genre’ of writing- like
Proverbs in the Old Testament.

Because of this- I am going to post each chapter
of the letter during this teaching- for those of you who have never read the
bible all the way thru-

I want to challenge you to read these short
chapters over the next few weeks.

I will comment and add historical stuff in this
teaching- like I did in the other recent studies.

But most of all- read each chapter for yourself-
ask God to give you wisdom- and apply the instruction of this letter to your
life.

It is a very practical- straight forward teaching
that comes to us from the brother of Jesus himself.

As I have been commenting on the other writings
that did not make it into our bibles- like the Gnostic gospels-

One of the reasons these extra biblical writings
have so much appeal-

Is because they claim to have other teachings-
from/about Jesus- that are not in the bible.

For those of us who reject these other writings-
as canon-

The letter of James kind of fills the void of ‘we
want to know more about what Jesus taught’.

This would be the letter to read- because James
grew up with Jesus- in the same home.

He was the oldest sibling of the Holy Family-

And he was not a follower of Jesus until after
the resurrection of Christ.

He was one of the witnesses Jesus appeared to
after his resurrection [Paul told us this in Corinthians].

So- if anyone has any ‘secret insight’ into the
other stuff Jesus taught- it would be James.

James
1:7 For let not that man think that he shall receive any thing of the Lord.

James
1:8 A double minded man is unstable in all his ways.

James
1:9 Let the brother of low degree rejoice in that he is exalted:

James
1:10 But the rich, in that he is made low: because as the flower of the grass

[parts]

END NOTES OF POST-

WHAT ARE THE DEAD SEA SCROLLS?

OCTAVIAN- A GOD?

CICERO- MARK ANTONY [or Anthony
if you like].

WHO WERE THE ESSENES?

DID THE CHURCH ENGAGE IN A GRAND
CONSPIRACY?

END NOTES [I posted the video for
this portion a few days ago- it goes along with Hebrews 7-9 video/post] The
past few weeks I had a few friends ask me about the Dead Sea Scrolls- and a few
other questions about the ‘lost books of the bible’ and some other common- and
mistaken ideas [like the original sin being Eve had sex with the serpent].

So- I figured I would cover a
little Jewish history- which would help in this study of Hebrews-

And also hit on a few of these
subjects.

As we read Hebrews- it helps to
also understand some of the history that we don’t have in our bibles [though
the Catholic bibles do have some of it in the Apocrypha].

Ok- the ruling empire at the time
of Christ was Rome- just prior to the appearance of Jesus- the Roman Emperor-
Caesar Augustus- consolidated the Roman Empire under his rule-

Rome was ruled by a senate- some
famous names from history were in it- Cicero being one.

Caesar Augustus was the nephew of
Julius Caesar- his real name was Octavian [Octavius].

After the death of Julius Caesar-
there were some power struggles that took place- between some other famous
people.

Marc Antony being one of them
[Cleopatra too- he was in love with the girl for sure].

Now- we read about Augustus in
the New Testament- and we read in the book of Revelation about the Mark of the
Beast- and that those who don't worship- give homage to the Beast- they will be
killed.

So- Many Christians would be
killed because they would refuse to give homage to Caesar Augustus [meaning son
of the Divine].

‘Wow- how did he get a name like
that’ [there was more than one Caesar by the way- as well as more than one
Herod- who did play a part in these power struggles- it can get confusing- even
to me].

When Octavian defeated Marc
Antony at Actium [32 BC].

Herod [The Great] had a problem-
he had previously sided with Antony and found himself on the losing side.

Yet he was smart- did some ‘brown
nosing’ as we say-and patched things up.

Herod had 3 sons- who would
eventually take positions of authority in the Roman government at the time of
Christ.

Herod Antipas was over the region
that we read about in the New Testament where Jesus did most of his ministry-
Galilee.

Ok- Octavian claimed deity
because of a heavenly sign associated with his rise to power- and this is how
he became called ‘Caesar Augustus’.

He sort of saw himself as a ‘re-incarnate’- of his great uncle Julius
Caesar.

‘John- what in the heck does this
have to do with the Dead Sea Scrolls’.

Ok- good question.

The Jews had various responses to
the empires that ruled over them during various times.

Alexander the Great instituted
Hellenization- a sort of cultural compromise over the people he conquered.

They could keep their
religious/cultural roots- but would be subservient to Alexander and Greek rule.

Some Jewish people rejected any
compromise- we call them the Essenes- they moved out of town- so to speak, and
lived in what we refer to as the Qumran community.

This was a few centuries before
the time of Christ- and this was where the Dead Seas Scrolls were found in the
20th century.

A Bedouin boy was looking for his
goats- threw a rock in a cave right off the Dead Sea- and that’s how we found
the scrolls.

The scrolls might have been
hidden there by the Essenes-

Now- when my friends asked me
about them- I told them that it’s been a while since I read up on any of this-
but to the best of my memory the thing that made them significant was the fact
that they were very old manuscripts- from the bible- and they backed up what we
had had all along.

I did read up this week- and
basically had it right.

The earliest Hebrew manuscripts
of the Old Testament we had previously dated back to around 900- 1000 A.D.

These manuscripts went back about
1000 years earlier- and they contained portions from almost every book of the
Old testament- and some complete books.

The only book missing was Esther.

So- this was indeed a very
significant find for scholars.

But the Scrolls also contain some
of the writings from the Essenes themselves- things we never had before- so
this too was significant.

There were Jews at the time of
the first century who tried to ‘get along’ with Rome- and with the person in
charge of their region [one of the sons of Herod the Great at the time of
Christ].

These are referred to as
Herodian’s in the bible.

Some wanted a revolution to rid
Rome from Jerusalem- these were the Zealots [one of Jesus disciples was in this
group].

Some thought if they returned to
a legalistic obeisance of the law- that this would bring in a deliverer- like
the stories we read about in the Old testament- these were the Pharisees.

And some took more of a political
compromise- these were the Sadducees.

Eventually a war with Rome would
be fought [By the way- Josephus- the famous 1st century historian- fought on
the side of the Jews in the war- and after Jerusalem was sacked in A.D. 70- he
went to Rome and wrote his great works- thinking he would make a case for the
Jewish people with the Romans. This is why we have his works today- which are
very valuable to scholars].

NOTE- In time I’ll try and cover
how we ‘got our bibles’ [called the Canon- meaning Rule/ Measurement].

Frankly- there is a lot of
confusion in the general public about conspiracies [like the Catholic Church
had some type of plot to keep certain books out].

Or stories about how the Church
taught Mary Magdalene was a prostitute so they could discredit her.

Actually- we read in the gospels
that Jesus cast out ‘spirits’ from a woman who was probably living this type of
life-

And Jesus had a ministry to the
down and out- it is indeed possible that Mary was one of these women-

And if true- it would not demean
her in any way-

That’s how this tradition more
than likely developed- But- we don’t know for sure.

So a few years back the Church
officially said ‘we don’t know’.

Ok- Plot?

No- just being careful.

So there are other misguided
beliefs like this- that sincere people have- and over time I hope to get to
them.

I’ll do one more in keeping with
this post.

I mentioned above that Caesar
Augustus did indeed take the title of ‘son of God’.

And some critics of the Church
say ‘see- there were all types of religions that had Sons of God’.

I watched one show a few years
back- and it stated that these religions had ’12 disciples- a leader named Lord
and Savior- and he healed and claimed to be God’s Son- and rose from the dead’.

Ok- that show was ‘fibbing’ to put
it lightly- they went too far [historically speaking] in trying to diminish the
Christians claim of Christ by doing this.

Now- is there some truth to this
at all?

Yes- like I just mentioned above-
Octavian did indeed claim deity- a ‘son of god’.

So- how do we explain this?

In the book of Galatians the
bible says ‘in the FULLNESS of times God sent forth his Son’.

Jesus came at a set time in
history- in fulfilment of the Jewish Prophets- to be who he was- and to do what
he did.

Now- this is not special pleading
here- but I find it a masterpiece that God’s Son came at a time when the Roman
Empire had one sitting on the throne- who too claimed deity.

Yet Jesus was in a region of the
lower class- his men were not highly educated- and his followers were people under
oppression.

Augustus lived in the wealthy and
influential capital of ‘the world’- he had all you could ever ask for- he was
worshiped as a god.

Yet in 3 short centuries- one of
the heirs of the empire- Constantine- would have an experience – not with a
former Caesar- but with a vison of a Cross-

He would convert to Christianity-
and declare Christianity to be the religion of the realm.

He would then ‘convert’ the pagan
temples- into churches for these followers of Christ.

So I don’t see the fact that Augustus
claimed to be a son of god right before Christ- as some type of discredit to
the claims of Christ.

No- I see it as God’s way of
pulling the rug out from the oppressor- see? [Oh- by the way- only one of them
rose from the dead- can you guess?]

[parts]

[1740] THE UNEXAMINED LIFE IS NOT WORTH LIVING- PLATO.

I caught a show the other night on Link TV. It was a spin
off from this famous Platonic quote- it was called ‘The examined life’.

They interviewed some of the most prominent philosophers of
our day. Cornell West, Peter Singer- a few others [I think the name is Singer?]
I found it interesting that Singer- who specializes in Ethics- tried to make
the case that you really don’t need religion/God in order to do ethics- all you
need is to work from the basic principle that says ‘try to treat others like
you too want to be treated- and then you will have a foundation for morals’.

Now- I caught the contradiction right away- do you see it?
Who is he quoting? This is the great moral principle- given to us by Jesus
himself- called the Golden Rule.

This actual principle- in Theology [the study of God] we
call Natural/Moral law. The Argument is based on the reality that all people
[not animals- Singer- get to it in a moment] have within them this moral
compass [Romans 1] and that this in itself is proof that there must be a higher
moral being- a transcendent being- who has put it in man.

I just found it funny that Singer- who is supposed to be a
prominent atheist/agnostic thinker- would fall flat on his face like this.

Singer advocates for legal Rights for animals- and has also
argued that viability of the new born baby should determine its personhood- he
says that we should be able to abort babies up until around the age of 1-
because they can’t really survive on their own until that age.

Sad.

Okay- why do Philosophy- or Physics- or any other of a
number of schools of thought? Because
too often Christians abandon these fields- and then when someone from that
field says ‘this is why we don’t need God’ we usually have no answer.

When we think about philosophy- most of us think about the 3
great big shots- Socrates, Plato and Aristotle. While it is true that these
guys were the major guys at right around the 5th century B.C.- yet
we actually date the beginning point to the early 6TH Century B.C.
to a man by the name of Thales.

Thales accurately predicted a solar eclipse in the year 585
B.C. and he gained notoriety because of this. Thales was the first Greek
thinker to grapple with the idea that there must be one reality that makes up
all things.

He would argue that Water was this element- that contained
being and Motion and life. Many of these pre Socratic thinkers were obsessed
with the idea of motion- where did it come from?

Thales observed that streams and rivers- and all types of
water sources flow- so to him this was a logical source of motion.

This idea- that only one element makes up all reality- is
called Monism. Monism is not be confused with Monotheism- the belief in one
God- Monism actually leads to another religious view- called Pantheism- the
belief that God is everything- and everything is God.

This is not the historic Christian view.

Now- the pre Socratic guys- Parmenides, Zeno, Heraclitus-
these guys would challenge Thales view that water was the main thing.

Some said ‘maybe it’s Air’ another said ‘Earth’ and some
Fire. These 4 elements [Earth, Air [wind] Fire and Water- are the 4 basic
elements of the early Greek philosophers.

We see these things in the naming of musical groups [Earth
Wind and Fire] as well as the themes in movies [fantastic 4- based on 4 basic
elements- powers].

Now- one of the thinkers said ‘wait- maybe the reality
behind all things is not any one of these elements- maybe there is a 5th
dimension [another musical name- and also the famous Bruce Willis flick- called
the 5th Element] a Boundless being- outside of time and matter-
maybe this 5ht element is the foundation for all things.

Of course this view would lead to the more developed view of
God that Socrates and his followers would embrace- an early view of God- much
like the later Christian view [absent the Trinity].

By the way- the view that 2 or more elements make up all
reality is called Pluralism- not to be confused with religious Pluralism [that
all religions lead to the same God]. The most common form of Pluralism is
Dualism [2 realities equally true] but all non Monists who embrace more than
one reality are Pluralists.

Okay- maybe a bit much with the 10 dollar words- but it
might spark the interest of some.

The church has debated for centuries on whether or not
Philosophy should be taught to Christians. One of the early church fathers-
Tertullian- said no- his famous quote is ‘what does Jerusalem have to do with
Athens’.

Meaning what does Philosophy have in common with
Christianity [Athens- Greece was the seat of philosophy in Jesus’ day].

For the most part- the early church fathers would embrace
the study of philosophy- and try to make arguments for the Christian faith by
presenting Christianity as ‘thee’ philosophy that best answers the questions of
man.

These early Christian thinkers are called Apologists- men
like Justin Martyr are in this class.

Apologist is a word we use to describe those who defend the
faith- it comes from the Apostle Peter’s letter in the N.T. where Peter says
‘give an answer to those who ask you about the faith’. In the Greek language-
the original language the N.T. was written in- this phrase is talking about a
defense- an ‘apology’ in the sense of ‘making the case’ not in the common sense
of apologizing.

In the book of Acts- chapter 17- we read the famous sermon
of the apostle Paul- given at Mars Hill.
He was in Athens at the time- and he was debating with all the philosophers of
the day. He tells them ‘as I was looking around town- I saw that one of your
altars is addressed to The Unknown God’.

He would go on and declare unto them that this Jesus is the
true God- the one raised from the dead.

Paul also said ‘in Him we live and MOVE and have our being’.
Kind of a popular verse quoted by preacher’s today- but we often overlook the
significance of the MOVE part.

I mean- why say we MOVE in him too? Paul was a smart guy- he
knew these children of Socrates questioned where motion came from [Remember
Thales?] So he was basically saying ‘I am declaring to you the one true
reality- the true 5th Element- the missing God particle from your
system’ and he went on and preached Christ- being raised from the dead.

Paul knew that you can’t really do true philosophy- to
grapple with the questions of life and being and ‘motion’ without realizing
that God is indeed the ultimate answer to all things.

Even Peter Singer- who claimed that you don’t need God or religion
in order to do Ethics- even he unknowingly quoted Jesus in attempting to give a
basis for his Philosophy- yes- he quoted a God- one unknown to him- just like
the altar at Athens- but a God never the less.

An inescapable 5th element- the missing part to
the whole puzzle.

VERSES-

John
17:1 These words spake Jesus, and lifted up his eyes to heaven, and said,
Father, the hour is come; glorify thy Son, that thy Son also may glorify thee:

John
17:2 As thou hast given him power over all flesh, that he should give eternal
life to as many as thou hast given him.

John
17:3 And this is life eternal, that they might know thee the only true God, and
Jesus Christ, whom thou hast sent.

John
17:4 I have glorified thee on the earth: I have finished the work which thou
gavest me to do.

John
17:5 And now, O Father, glorify thou me with thine own self with the glory
which I had with thee before the world was.

John
17:6 I have manifested thy name unto the men which thou gavest me out of the
world: thine they were, and thou gavest them me; and they have kept thy word.

John
17:7 Now they have known that all things whatsoever thou hast given me are of
thee.

John
17:8 For I have given unto them the words which thou gavest me; and they have
received them, and have known surely that I came out from thee, and they have
believed that thou didst send me.

John
17:9 I pray for them: I pray not for the world, but for them which thou hast
given me; for they are thine.

John
17:10 And all mine are thine, and thine are mine; and I am glorified in them.

John
17:11 And now I am no more in the world, but these are in the world, and I come
to thee. Holy Father, keep through thine own name those whom thou hast given
me, that they may be one, as we are.

John
17:12 While I was with them in the world, I kept them in thy name: those that
thou gavest me I have kept, and none of them is lost, but the son of perdition;
that the scripture might be fulfilled.

John
17:13 And now come I to thee; and these things I speak in the world, that they
might have my joy fulfilled in themselves.

John
17:14 I have given them thy word; and the world hath hated them, because they
are not of the world, even as I am not of the world.

John
17:15 I pray not that thou shouldest take them out of the world, but that thou
shouldest keep them from the evil.

John
17:16 They are not of the world, even as I am not of the world.

John
17:17 Sanctify them through thy truth: thy word is truth.

John
17:18 As thou hast sent me into the world, even so have I also sent them into
the world.

John
17:19 And for their sakes I sanctify myself, that they also might be sanctified
through the truth.

John
17:20 Neither pray I for these alone, but for them also which shall believe on
me through their word;

John
17:21 That they all may be one; as thou, Father, art in me, and I in thee, that
they also may be one in us: that the world may believe that thou hast sent me.

John
17:22 And the glory which thou gavest me I have given them; that they may be
one, even as we are one:

John
17:23 I in them, and thou in me, that they may be made perfect in one; and that
the world may know that thou hast sent me, and hast loved them, as thou hast
loved me.

John
17:24 Father, I will that they also, whom thou hast given me, be with me where
I am; that they may behold my glory, which thou hast given me: for thou lovedst
me before the foundation of the world.

John
17:25 O righteous Father, the world hath not known thee: but I have known thee,
and these have known that thou hast sent me.

John
17:26 And I have declared unto them thy name, and will declare it: that the
love wherewith thou hast loved me may be in them, and I in them.

9 After
this manner therefore pray ye: Our Father which art in heaven, Hallowed be thy
name.

10 Thy
kingdom come, Thy will be done in earth, as it is in heaven.

11 Give us
this day our daily bread.

12 And
forgive us our debts, as we forgive our debtors.

13 And lead
us not into temptation, but deliver us from evil: For thine is the kingdom, and
the power, and the glory, for ever. Amen.

14 For if
ye forgive men their trespasses, your heavenly Father will also forgive you:

15 But if
ye forgive not men their trespasses, neither will your Father forgive your
trespasses.

Ephesians
1:3 Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who hath blessed us
with all spiritual blessings in heavenly places in Christ:

Ephesians
1:4 According as he hath chosen us in him before the foundation of the world,
that we should be holy and without blame before him in love:

Ephesians
1:5 Having predestinated us unto the adoption of children by Jesus Christ to
himself, according to the good pleasure of his will,

And without controversy great is themysteryof godliness: God was manifest
in the flesh, justified in the Spirit, seenofangels, preached unto the Gentiles,
believed on in the world, received up into glory. Tim. 3:16

For unto us a child is born, unto us a son is given: and the
government shall be upon his shoulder: and his name shall be called Wonderful,
Counsellor, The mighty God, TheeverlastingFather, The Prince of Peace.
Isaiah 9:6

26 And after
eight days again his disciples were within, and Thomas with them: then came
Jesus, the doors being shut, and stood in the midst, and said, Peace be unto
you.

27 Then
saith he to Thomas, Reach hither thy finger, and behold my hands; and reach
hither thy hand, and thrust it into my side: and be not faithless, but
believing.

Note- Please do me a favor, those who read/like the posts-
re-post them on other sites as well as the site you read them on. I deal with
issues at times that it would be beneficial for some of you to download and
save the file from the Word Press link. This creates a permanent record. The
on-line videos are only good if sites are not hacked- which has happened in the
past. Thanks- John.#

Me at the homeless mission

About Me

I am a Fire Fighter living in Corpus Christi Texas [retired after 25 years] Married with 4 girls. And lots of cats![my daughter said it sounds like I have 4 wives. I am married and have 4 daughters]
johnchiarello@hotmail.com